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Lamingtons

Yesterday was Anzac Day. Anzac stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corp and the anniversary of the first major military action fought by the Anzacs in WWI.

Lamingtons are an iconic Australian treat. Though there are quite a few stories of how and where they were invented what the actual treat is made from is not. Start with a sponge or yellow cake, dipped in chocolate, and covered in coconut.

lately I have been making small batches of treats for my family so I used my favorite cake recipe and scaled it down. It worked beautifully.

1 c. plus 2 Tbsp. flour1/2 tsp baking powder1/2 (scant) tsp. baking sodaLarge pinch salt1/2 sick butter1/2 c. sugar1/2 tsp vanilla extract1 egg1/2 c. buttermilkPreheat oven to 350. Beat the butter until it's at least broken up and not a stick, I found it doesn't beat very fluffy in that quantity. Beat in the sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the vanilla and the egg and beat until smooth. Add half the flour and mix, the buttermilk, and then the remaining flour. Pour in to a greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 until the top is done and the edges are golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Slide a rubber scrapper around the sides of the pan and invert on to a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely. 1/4 c. semi sweet chocolate chips1 Tbsp. butter1/3 c. milk1 - 1 1/2 c. powdered sugar1 Tbsp. cocoa powder1 Tbsp. boiling water as needed2 c. shredded coconut, ground fine in the food processorIn a pan heat the chocolate chips, butter, and milk until the chocolate is melted. remove from the heat and whisk in the cocoa powder. Then whisk in the powdered sugar. Cut the cake in half lengthwise. spread with a thin layer of the chocolate and replace the top layer. Cut in half down the middle and then in quarters to form 8 squares. Sprinkle a pan with a half a cup of the coconut. Whisk a teaspoon of the boiling water in to the chocolate mixture. Dip the cake squares in to the chocolate mixture. If it's very thick whisk in an additional teaspoon of boiling water. Sprinkle the top and sides with the coconut and place on the tray sprinkled with coconut. This coats the bottom and helps to keep the cake from sticking. Place in the fridge until firm, about 4 hours. Enjoy!

As a self proclaimed food nerd I've put quite a bit of effort in to my study of other cultures cuisines. What stared as simple curiosity led to an in depth search to learn more. I've been lucky enough to traveled some in my life, across the US and some stops in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

This endeavor was formalized with this blog but it started quite a long time before that. I wanted a portfolio to chronical what I was learning. I wanted to have something to show. That's the trouble with food as a hobby, you eat your creations.

If you see something you like please leave a comment! If you have any suggestions of dishes to try email me at Queen.Reddd (at) gmail.com. I would love to hear from you.